Active Living News: "Washington D.C. Unveils Bike-Sharing Program"

Healthy Community Design

In The News

Updated April 2008

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"Washington D.C. Unveils Bike-Sharing Program"

A bike-sharing program, similar to ones that have found a high degree of success in European cities, is now ready to help shuttle errand-runners and those looking for a little exercise around the District of Columbia. Bike-sharing programs typically work by having bikes available for rental at heavily traveled spots around a city, with riders paying a one-time or yearly fee. By mid-May, silver bike racks holding the bright red bicycles, complete with a basket handy for a briefcase or some shopping, will be available for use with a simple swipe of a card. Users can buy a year pass for $40 of unlimited rentals, with the caveat that the bike must not be checked out for longer than 3 hours at a time, or on a one-time basis. D.C. transportation officials have sought to learn from the experiences of such programs across the Atlantic, where cities like Paris and Amsterdam have heavily-used bike-sharing systems, and have gone through the trial and error of learning the best way to run such a program. Most bike-sharing programs are run by outdoor advertising companies that often receive free bus-stop advertising in exchange. D.C. officials hold high hopes that this program will expand and enable another legitimate transportation alternative for the frequently gridlocked city.

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